East Kalimantan NGOs lambasted police for arresting protesting fishermen

Two prominent non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in East Kalimantan: Walhi and Jatam strongly protested the recent move by the Bontang police to arrest and detain seven fishermen protesting the operation of French oil giant TotalFinaElf.

The local Kaltim Post quoted the executive director of Walhi East Kalimantan branch as saying that there was no legal reason for the police to arrest the Tanjung Aru fishermen as they held the protest peacefully and had not made any threats.

He demanded the police to release the fishermen.

The fishermen had been protesting the construction of an underwater pipeline by TotalFinaElf as it had caused their fish catch to declined significantly. The fishermen had demanded a compensation but the oil company declined to pay.(*)